THE GOVERNMENT IS to retain the current TV licence fee system, despite a proposal by the Future of Media Commission to replace it with direct exchequer funding.
The recommendation by the commission was contained in a long-awaited report, which was published this morning and contains 50 proposals.
The commission was established two years ago to examine Ireland’s broadcast, print and online media and to consider how Ireland’s media can remain sustainable in delivering a public service over the next decade.
The Government announced this morning that Cabinet had agreed to support 49 of its proposals, rejecting the recommendation to abolish the TV licence fee and replace it with central funding.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that the decision to overhaul the TV licence instead and to target additional investment into media in Ireland marked a new departure.
“The Government is determined to do everything we can to ensure that Ireland’s media continues to deliver high quality public service content at local, regional and national levels,” he said.
TV Licence
The commission was specifically asked to make recommendations about how RTÉ should be funded, and its report stated that the broadcaster should receive direct funding from the Government from 2024.
“From that date, the source of public funding for public service media and public service content should change from the current TV Licence system (combined with exchequer funding) to a system based entirely on Exchequer funding derived from general tax revenue, with an appropriate adjustment in taxation, if necessary, to meet this cost,” the report reads.
In a statement this morning, the Government said that today’s announcement acknowledged that the TV licence system is “out of step with changing trends in media consumption” and that it “does not realise the full funding needs of the sector”.
However, it said that in order to maintain a direct link between media and the public and to minimise the risk of potential or perceive political interference in media independence, the TV licence will be maintained but overhauled.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar also said that the report would help secure the future of broadcasting in Ireland but that the decision to “maintain but overhaul the licence fee is the correct one”.
“It guarantees a dedicated and more secure funding stream for public service broadcasting and ensures that funding for the public service is ring-fenced,” he said.
The Taoiseach agreed with the Tánaiste, adding that some EU member states have a high level of control over media outlets.
“I would say that danger is always there, we’ve seen it already in some EU member states where governments are now directly influencing, to an unhealthy degree, media outlets and have an overbearing influence on some media outlets which does impact on democracy and choice.”
Following the publication of the report, Minister for Media Catherine Martin said that a technical group will be established and will report back to her department in November on how best to implement the agreed recommendations.
When asked about whether or not the TV licence fee could be expanded beyond just households that own a TV, Minister Martin said that it would be examined by the technical group.
“I think that will be one of the issues that the technical group will have to look at is the households that don’t have a TV,” said Martin, adding that legislation to improve the collection of the TV licence would also be examined.
RTÉ reaction
Reacting to the report this afternoon, RTÉ said that it was welcome that changes to how the licence fee were now being examined.
The broadcaster said that the change was “critical” due to changes in how Irish people consume media in recent years.
“Over the past decade, RTÉ, along with numerous stakeholders, has called for the licence fee system, which is utterly broken, to be meaningfully reformed,” said RTÉ Director General Dee Forbes.
The decision by Government today to align the obligation to pay the Licence Fee with how people consume media today is critical to ensure the future sustainability of the system.
RTÉ’s Chair, Moya Doherty said that the decision to reform the licence fee was welcome, but that how quickly the change is implemented was “more critical than ever”.
VAT cuts
The commission’s other recommendations include a reduced or 0% VAT rate on newspapers, greater promotion of equality and diversity within Irish media, a comprehensive review of Irish language services, and the development of a National Counter-Disinformation Strategy.
However, the Taoiseach said that any VAT rate cuts on newspapers would have to be in line with the current EU VAT directive.
“The Government will examine that but there are limitations in terms of EU VAT directives and VAT law. We’ll look at a number of recommendations in respect of the print media, defamation being another we’re actively pursuing,” said the Taoiseach.
We’ll look to see what we can do financially around taxation to ease the pressure on print media, we do acknowledge that print media has huge challenges.
The report said that over the next decade, “technological innovation and market evolution are likely to reshape Ireland’s media system beyond recognition”.
However, it said there were “a number of dangers” which created a “cause for concern” despite the traditional strengths of Ireland’s media system.
“Like other liberal democracies, Ireland is increasingly exposed to the insidious threats of misinformation and disinformation, distributed and amplified on social media and content platforms, which has a damaging effect on the quality, reliability and plurality of information that many in the public are receiving,” it says.
“In this context, the importance to Irish society of a vibrant, independent media system that can counteract the worst effects of these threats, and continue to deliver public service objectives, has never been clearer.”
The report also recommended that a group with an independent chair should be established to implement its findings.
Minister Martin also said that the establishment of the new media regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, would provide the regulatory and developmental framework to implement the report.
- Contains reporting from Tadgh McNally.
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